Long-range rockets strike Eilat

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Two long-range rockets fired from the Sinai Desert struck the Israeli resort city of Eilat.

The rockets launched Wednesday morning fell in open areas in the southernmost Israeli city, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

Israeli forces found the remnants of the two rockets. One landed in a construction site in south Eilat.

A Sinai-based Islamist group claimed responsibility for the attack. Magles Shoura al-Mujahddin said in a statement on its website that the rockets were retaliating for the Israeli army’s actions against protesters demonstrating over the death of a Palestinian prisoner, Haaretz reported.

Local residents and tourists had been ushered into bomb shelters following a warning siren before the two explosions.

An Iron Dome missile defense system battery deployed in the Eilat area tracked the rockets but did not operate to shoot them down, according to reports.

Following the attack, the Eilat airport was closed for several hours.

Jordan denied reports that at least two other rockets fired from the Sinai hit Aqaba.